Winners all around in East-West Shrine Game

Published 6:00 pm, Wednesday, January 23, 2008

While the Robertson Stadium scoreboard displayed the West's 31-13 victory in the annual East-West Shrine Football Game, the real winners were the 22 Shriners Hospitals for Children.

The game is one of the oldest annual post-season contests featuring college all stars. This was the 83rd version and was played out before a crowd of 15,328 who braved the very chilly weather for a worthy cause.

The heat is not on

The crowd, the 100+ players on both sides and the coaches along with the photographers on the field weren't the only ones braving the temperatures in the 40s. Everyone in the Robertson Stadium press box kept their coats on. The rooms on both sides of the pressbox, including the VIP lounge, were nice and warm but no heat was coming in to our little corner of the world.

I didn't particularly want to set the world on fire, but a little heat in the pressbox would have helped. It got so cold up there at one point that I nearly tripped over my own breath.

Overall it was a very worthwhile experience all around. Everyone from the UH staff to the Shriners organization should be commended.

Very worthy game

This Shrine Game actually deserves better attention from the media and full backing of the NCAA. These days it's all about money and the Shrine Game persists in doing foolish things like putting the money into its hospitals.

The entire purpose of this game, as Executive Director Jack Hart put it, is "Strong legs run so that weak legs may walk."

I know you don't like to read statistics - sports are full of them - but these are important and real short.

Shriners Hospitals spend an estimated $2.2 million each day in patient care for children. They don't ask for nor do they accept money from insurance companies or from the government. It all comes from donations and proceeds from the annual game.

Flips for the cause

Some of those "strong" legs on the West side of the John O'Quinn Field at Robertson Stadium belonged to Kevin Robinson of Utah State, who had probably the most exciting play of the game when he returned a punt 72 yards for a touchdown. To punctuate it, once he crossed into the end zone he flipped to the delight of the few fans in the end zone seats. Robinson would later score again, this time on a pass reception in the fourth quarter.

Former Clear Creek High standout Chase Ortiz of Texas Christian University, whom we last saw in the Texas Bowl a few weeks ago, did his part in stopping East ball carriers. Ortiz played the defensive line. Another former local player, UT's Scott Derry did well in the linebacker position. Derry played his high school ball at Pearland High.

Of course, we mustn't forget University of Houston's Anthony Alridge, who felt at ease and had a good time playing on his home turf. He scored one touchdown, from four yards out, and gained a total of 87 yards on the night.

Other West players were from Texas A&M, Arizona State, Air Force, Arizona, Oregon State, UCLA, Idaho, Colorado State, BYU and several others including Saskatchewan. Yes, Saskatchewan.

The East had its share of top players from schools such as Virginia Tech, Kansas State, Wisconsin, Penn State, Michigan State, Navy, Georgia, Tennessee, Arkansas, Purdue and other top schools in the east.

Veteran coaching staff

The coaching staff was top-notch on both sides.

Dick Vermeil coached the East. A veteran NFL coach, Vermeil coached the St. Louis Rams to a Super Bowl XXXIV win over the Tennessee Titans in 1999. He also went to the Super Bowl when he was head coach at Philadelphia, but lost to the Oakland Raiders in 1980. He is the only coach to win both the Super Bowl and the Rose Bowl, when he coached at UCLA.

Coaching the West was Mike White, former head coach of the Oakland Raiders. Prior to that he was head coach at California and Illinois and appearances in the Rose Bowl and Peach Bowl.

Before the contest started 15-year-old Mariah Moreno, a former patient at the Shriners Hospital in Houston, sang the National Anthem.

The NFL scouts were in full force at the game and for good reason. Every NFL team has a Shrine Game alum on its 2007 roster. That includes New England's Tom Brady and Bret Favre of Green Bay.

The University of Houston and the Houston Texans provided facilities, with the Texans allowing the East and West players and coaches access to their practice facility.

To recap the game, the East struck first with a 42-yard field goal by Wisconsin's Taylor Mehihaff to take a 3-0 lead with four minutes remaining in the first quarter.

The East stopped West's next drive but then the West returned the favor. That's where Robinson comes in.

The West wide receiver took the ball at his 28 and weaved and danced near the East sideline for 72 yards and the touchdown. With 49 seconds remaining in the first period the West took the lead for good, 7-3.

After Garrett Hartley of Oklahoma was successful on a 23-yard field goal as time ran out, the West went into the warm locker rooms with a 10-3 lead.

After the break Alridge got his 4-yard TD run with five minutes left in the third quarter for a 17-3 margin.

Mehihaff's 28-yarder for the East made it 17-6 at the start of the fourth period, but Robinson then got his second score when he caught a 5-yard pass from West quarterback Josh Johnson of San Diego State with 11 minutes left. That made it 24-6.

The East drew a little closer with four minutes remaining when running back Cory Boyd of South Carolina went in from the five to make it 24-13.

After a West punt, the East wanted to make the score more respectable but West linebacker Alvin Bowen of Iowa State intercepted a pass and ran it 20 yards into the end zone for the final 31-13 with 30 seconds left in the game.

The East had three quarterbacks who passed for 184 yards, but were also picked off four times. The West also used three signal callers who threw for 186, but suffered no interceptions. The West rushed for 176 yards to the East's 126.

Post-game honors went to West quarterback Johnson, who was named offensive player of the game. Arizona linebacker Spencer Larson, also from the West, got defensive player of the game honors.